Payment app Venmo has made splitting dinner bills easy, but is it safe?

Venmo is a popular smartphone app that lets you transfer money to another person’s account without fees and without credit cards. Andrew Harrer / Bloomberg

The twentysomething university students Maya and Sarah went to lunch in Boston to talk, catch up and eat pasta. When the lunch was ending and the bill came, Maya took out her credit card and said to Sarah: “I can pay – just Venmo me for your penne alfredo.” Sarah logged into her Venmo app and sent Maya US$11 for her food. Splitting the bill at a restaurant has rarely been so easy.

Venmo is a popular smartphone app that lets you transfer money to another person’s account without fees and without credit cards. The self-described “digital wallet” makes transferring money seem fast, casual and convenient. It can be used for things from splitting the lunch tab to paying the month’s rent.

Venmo and its peers such as Square Cash and Google Wallet matter because they are changing the way money is moved around in a broader mobile-wallet market. Venmo, which is available in the United States and plans to expand internationally, is just one example of the progress of the peer-to-peer economy, wherein individuals transact directly with each other, without intermediation by a third party such as a bank.

Last year, analysts from Jefferies, a global investment banking firm, said: “We believe Venmo [and PayPal] benefit from a significant first mover advantage and a large and loyal customer base, and the social media component provides a differentiated consumer experience.”

There is potential for big growth in this space; the rising use of peer-to-peer applications among young people is cultivating prospects for the adoption of all kinds of smartphone-based payments.

On July 17, Venmo did a peer-to-peer transaction of its own, announcing that it can now be used inside 11 e-commerce apps, including Munchery, Parking Panda and Delivery.com.

Back in 2009, Venmo began life as a payment system through text message. Three years later, Braintree snapped up Venmo for $26.2 million. (In 2013, PayPal acquired Braintree for $800m.) By the first quarter this year, Venmo’s year-over-year growth was up by 154 per cent, to $3.2 billion in payments.

But the big question for Venmo and its peers, as they work to complement or even supplant established banks, is: can you keep my money safe?

Apps that are directly linked to bank accounts must be held to high security standards. The company claims on its website that it uses “bank-grade sec­urity systems and data encryption” to protect users from unauthorised charges and theft of personal information. Venmo also says it guarantees all user funds against unauthorised transactions, and routinely has its security measures audited.

As another security measure, the app lets users set up a Pin code or use fingerprint verification every time the app is opened, and when you send or request payments.

Despite these measures, Venmo has been criticised because of security breaches. Last year, Slate described weaknesses in Venmo’s security and notification features, detailing an incident where a tech worker in New York named Chris Grey lost $2,850 through the app. The money was sent to a user Mr Grey didn’t recognise. He said that he never received an email that his password had been changed, that another email was added to his account, that another device was added to his account, or that his settings had been changed.

Venmo’s new security update will now send you an email if your password, email or phone number has been changed. Users should also add other notifications to help monitor suspicious activity. It is a good idea to keep the following notifications on: payment received, payment sent, bank transfers to Venmo completed, Venmo to bank transfer requested, login attempted and added remembered device.

But even with the updated sec­urity measures, hackers could still access accounts. Since the app connects to your Facebook or email account, someone who is able to hack your email can then access your Venmo ­account to send themselves money directly from the connected bank account, or debit card.

For many users, a related flaw is that there is no way to cancel a transaction. Users must contact Venmo for help or report fraud to their bank. As a precaution, many people don’t use Venmo on public Wi-Fi networks, because it is easier for hackers to obtain your information on these networks. Also, many do not use Venmo when transferring money with a stranger.

Square Cash and Google Wallet share similar features as mob­ile-payment services and serve as options for Venmo’s doubters.

Square Cash is like Venmo, but when you send money to a friend, they don’t have to download the Square Cash app, unlike with Venmo. They tap a link in an email or text message, enter the information for the debit card, and the money is in their account within 24 hours.

Google Wallet allows users to send money to anyone in the US using an email address or phone number. It’s free to send directly from your debit card, bank account or Wallet Balance. Users can do this through the Google Wallet app, or, if they are on a desktop, they can send and request money through Gmail.

Facebook allows users to send money through its Messenger feature and app. Snapchat has Snapcash, which is the same idea.

When the big banks push back, it will be tough for them to match the social feel of Venmo. The app connects users to a social network on an activity feed that lists users’ transactions. Users can scroll through the app’s home screen and see charges made between friends and charges happening near them. The amount of money exchanged is hidden, but users can see a caption or title for each transaction, written by those involved in the payment. Users can also like and comment on charges made by their friends. If you don’t want your transactions to be visible, they can be made private.

Despite the security concerns, Venmo is quickly growing in popularity for small transactions. For young lunch-goers such as Maya and Sarah, this is the new normal of personal fin­ance.​

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